ENERGY STAR Labeled Building Profile

The Richard B. Russell Federal Building (RBR) is a 1.25 million square foot mixed use facility located in downtown Atlanta that houses the U.S. District Court, Northern District of Georgia/Atlanta Division, and offices for several other federal agencies, including DOE's Atlanta Regional Office. The RBR, which opened in 1979, is named for Georgia's Senator Richard B. Russell, who served in the U.S. Senate from 1933-1971. Recent upgrades in the RBR building systems, made via a FEMP Super Energy Performance Savings Contract (ESPC), have earned the building an ENERGY STAR rating, the first GSA-owned building in the 8-state Southeast Sunbelt Region to achieve this distinction.

The RBR has been upgraded to an ENERGY STAR building, effective May 1, 2001, through a Super ESPC between the General Services Administration (GSA), Southeast Sunbelt Region and ERI, Inc., a FEMP Energy Services Contractor (ESCO). The FEMP program to facilitate the use of the Super ESPC vehicle by federal agencies was initiated by federal legislation effective May 1998. Two months later, Doug Culbreth of DOE's Atlanta Regional Office and Patrick Hughes, Oak Ridge National Lab's FEMP manager, met with GSA executives in Atlanta to present the new alternative financing program and its benefits for improving the energy efficiency of GSA's buildings. Following that meeting, GSA signed four Interagency Agreements with FEMP for assistance in developing projects under the Southeast Regional Super ESPC program. These agreements called for ESPC projects in Atlanta GA, Columbia SC, Raleigh NC, and Memphis TN. GSA selected Atlanta as the first ESPC project and, after hearing proposals from the six regional ESCOs, selected ERI as the contractor for the job.

Initially, GSA intended to have ERI modify only the Peachtree Summit building, their Sunbelt Region headquarters in downtown Atlanta by replacing chillers and upgrade lighting. However, ERI found significant additional energy savings in the RBR and the nearby U.S. Court of Appeals, Eleventh Circuit building. As a result, the ESPC eventually included energy upgrades in all three buildings, a total of 2.35 million square feet owned by GSA. The total ERI capital investment in the multi-building ESPC, finalized in September 1999, was $6.44 million, with GSA making payments over a 20-year period and guaranteed savings of 18%.

Communications:

The Richard B Russell Federal Building received a 2001 FEMP Energy Saver Showcase award . It recgonizes federal facilities that showcase cost-effective energy efficiency technologies in their facilities. The RBR was also featured in the FEMP Focus newsletter.

Testimonial:

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Please note: Narrative information in this profile has been provided by U.S. General Services Administration or a representative of this facility. Other building information was verified and submitted to EPA at the time of application. Building energy performance, operating characteristics, and ownership/management may be subject to change over time.